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Month: December 2018

Take a dreidel and spin it. It’s fascinating. You never know which side it will land on. It could fall on the Gimmel, which means you win, or the Shin, which means you lose.

It seems totally random. You just spin and something happens. But really it isn’t. Every spin has an exact amount of kinetic energy to cause a measured number of turns. The table surface provides an exact amount of friction, and the air pushes the dreidel in a certain way, so it falls exactly as it is supposed to. Nothing is left to chance.

Life is like that. It may seem random sometimes. Things just happen, you win or you lose, it falls this way or that for no apparent reason. But that is not really so. There is a divine hand spinning the world. Every turn is deliberate, every experience you have is supposed to happen, and whether you win or lose, there is a reason behind it.

There are no self-spinning dreidels. There is always a hand behind the spin. And you are exactly where you are meant to be.

Rabbi Mendel Bluming serves the community in Potomac Maryland since 2000. Menachem Mendel Bluming and his family represent Chabad which teaches us to see the Hand behind every detail in life. Credits for this article to Rabbi Moss as well.

On Chanukah we celebrate the menorah that is the central symbol of the holiday, not the astounding military victory and attainment of freedom. Because freedom is only worth what you do with it, how you live your life as a result. Because you are free do you kindle the menorah of spreading light and holiness in the world? Money and freedom are just energy… how you use them is what matters.

Rabbi Mendel Bluming serves the Jewish community in Potomac Maryland. Menachem Mendel Bluming and his wife invite you to join the communal menorah lightings